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The England head coach despised the moniker Bazball the moment it emerged, deeming it reductive and perhaps anticipating how it might be used as a weapon down the line. Right now, trailing 2-0 in an Test series in Australia that began with great expectations, it has turned into the subject of mockery from Australia.

However the coach has contributed to the problem either. Following the gut-wrenching defeat at the Gabba, his claim that, if there was an issue, England were 'over-prepared' prior to the day-night Test was like trying to put out a bin fire with gasoline. It could become his lasting legacy as national coach if results do not take an upturn.

On one level, one must admire his commitment to the bit. As much as he claims to block out external noise, he must have been acutely aware of an England team increasingly characterised as freewheeling and underprepared.

The reality, as ever, is not so simple. England play as much golf during their necessary down time as their rivals and they train just as much. Prior to the Gabba Test, they trained for longer, logging five days compared to Australia's three, due to their limited experience to the pink Kookaburra ball and the different seeing conditions.

The Debate of Readiness and Practice

McCullum's point about being "excessively ready" was that those five extra days were his call – the instance he wavered in his conviction that less is more. It suggested a Test match's worth of mental energy was expended before they even stepped out in the intensity of Australia's stronghold. While net practice are a chance to refine technique, they can also become a safety blanket; low-pressure activity that simply keeps the reflexes sharp.

Schedules are congested such that warm-up matches against state sides were not possible (with uncertain value, when you consider England playing three before the 5-0 series loss in 2013-14). What is harder to square is the disregard of county championship cricket as a worthwhile exercise more broadly, as shown by a young player's wasted summer.

Match Shortcomings and Strategic Stagnation

Only playing hardens cricketers for the many situations they encounter, and it is here where England have thus far fallen well short. The issue is not just with the bat – harrowing as some of the decision-making has been – but an attack that seems without a spearhead. No bowler has demonstrated the persistence or discipline that the otherworldly Australian paceman and his teammates have displayed.

The coach's free-spirit approach was liberating during its first 12 months, an effective, well diagnosed remedy to eradicate the lethargy that preceded it. The frustration now stems from how it has seemingly not evolved past that initial phase – the lack of an second phase to the original software that has seen form decline to an even record from their most recent matches.

Player Spotlight and Team Decisions

One such player is Jamie Smith, a talent, no question, but one who is being mercilessly targeted on both edges and missed two key chances with the gloves. It probably does not help when your opposite number, the Australian keeper, has just delivered a virtuoso display.

Based on the coach's words after the match, England look likely to persist with Smith in Adelaide. The hope – similar to the broader situation – is that a return to a more familiar Test setting unleashes his top form, with Perth's trampoline surface and the unfamiliar day-night format now out of the way.

Another option is to implement the plan discovered during the victorious series in New Zealand last year by shifting the batsman down to his preferred position as a active No. 5 or 6, handing him the wicketkeeping duties, and picking a new No 3. Bethell scored runs for the Lions recently, or maybe an all-rounder could fulfil a comparable function to Moeen Ali in 2023.

Ultimately, these changes is perfect, with Australia's superior basics having shattered expectations and pushed the broader philosophy into the harsh glare of scrutiny.